Learning To Negotiate, Or How To Make Your Life Better In One Easy Step

Welcome to Saving Money with Andrew!

Are you a negotiator? If not, it’s time to become one.

Negotiating gets a bad rap. “Haggling” has negative connotations, and many people hesitate to assert themselves. Rejection sensitivity is real, and the very act of negotiating opens us up to the possibility of awkward rejection.

But the alternative is far worse. Those who don’t negotiate will constantly leave money on the table, ending up with less. Negotiating is not always appropriate, but makes sense in far more contexts than you might think. And the benefits of negotiating snowball, letting you live a better life now and save more for the future.

I wrote a two part series on negotiating basics in early 2020 (part 1 and part 2). It’s centered on negotiating your lease, but the lessons apply far more broadly and it’s a great starting point.

More recently, in The Complete Guide to Haggling in This Economy, the WSJ laid out tons of other great situations where negotiation can save you hundreds or even thousands of dollars.

It’s rare that negotiation will turn a bad deal into a good one, but it can often turn a good deal into a great one, saving you lots of money in the process. If you have any great negotiation “win” stories, I’d love to hear them!

And now, Andrew’s pick(s) of the week:

From the incredible How to Hire a Pop Star for Your Private Party:

At first, he had doubted that Flo Rida, his son’s favorite artist, would agree to come, but an agent informed him that most big-name musicians are available these days, under the right conditions. Flo Rida’s fee for private gigs in the United States runs between a hundred and fifty thousand and three hundred thousand dollars, depending on location, scale, and other particulars. Reginald Mathis, his lawyer, told me, “Internationally, it could run you up to a million.” For the Lincolnshire bar mitzvah, the contract stipulated private-jet travel, suitable accommodations, and a fee “in the six figures,” Mathis said; Flo Rida would perform for thirty minutes.

Also, Why Don’t Rich People Use Phone Cases?

And finally, it’s time to rejoice, because the national egg shortage is over, with wholesale egg prices down over 80% from peak levels! Interestingly, retail egg prices are only down about 20%, but should fall further.

I hope this has been helpful. If you liked it, please share it on social media! Also, please send me your feedback, requests, and success stories.